Hexagram #18

This is a drawing of a bowl filled with worms or insects. The bowl has
also been drawn and (cf. hex. 42). The symbol for 'insect' has also been drawn and , and has also meant 'reptile' or 'scaly creature'.
might refer to chronic diseases such as syphilis or tuberculosis, or
emotional and mental problems. Such diseases were commonly attributed to
the venom and urine of scorpions, Geckos, and the like that dripped into
food. By extension, it refers to social or political ills. It might also
refer to omens taken from a ritual that involved placing poisonous insects
in a covered bowl and watching them devour each other. Perhaps it also refers
to the emotional ills we inherit from our parents.

Sources

Chinese writing is historically based on drawings, not
spoken words. These original illustrations represent the oldest forms of
the Chinese characters that later became the names the Hexagrams. Please
review the Sources page for an explanation of
the references. The prose and verse explanations of the significance of
the Hexagrams are original, and should not be mistaken for translations
of I Ching text.